After collecting several lamp bases and shades (purchased for $1-$2 half price at thrift stores for a few months), I made a slide show of several different creative lamp ideas and showed it to my students. They were required to write down a few ideas that they liked, and then sketch the one they chose to do on paper. Once that was approved, they got to choose a lamp and a shade and begin working on their design. I found anything they asked for, and some of them found their own stuff. The results ranged from airplanes to semi truck horns (yes, that's a real one!) for the guys, and books, lace, trim, and kitchen gadgets for the ladies. We displayed these at our Christmas program open house, and I overheard one of the adults ask, "Did the students make these?" Yes, ma'am, they sure did.
